Method of making a valve construction having means for aligning the valve member with the valve seat thereof

ABSTRACT

A valve construction and method of making the same are provided, the valve construction comprising a housing, a valve seat carried by the housing, a movable lever carried by the housing and having an opening passing through opposed sides thereof, a valve member for opening and closing the valve seat and having a stem projecting through the opening of the lever whereby the valve member is carried by the lever, and a tubular member disposed in the opening of the lever and telescopically receiving the stem of the valve member therein whereby the tubular member spaces the stem from the lever at the opening thereof.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional patent application of its copendingparent patent application, Ser. No. 870,363, filed June 4, 1986, nowU.S. Pat. No. 4,685,652 which, in turn, is a divisional patentapplication of its copending parent patent application, Ser. No. 794,742filed Nov. 4, 1985, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,968.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a new valve construction and to a new methodof making such a valve construction.

2. Prior Art Statement

It is known to provide a valve construction comprising a housing means,a valve seat carried by the housing means, a movable lever carried bythe housing means and having an opening passing through opposed sides ofthe lever, and a valve member for opening and closing the valve seat andhaving a stem projecting through the opening of the lever whereby thevalve member is carried by the lever. For example, see the U.S. Pat. No.4,053,136 to Perl.

It is also known to provide a valve construction of the above typewherein the tubular member is disposed in the opening of the lever andtelescopically received the stem of the valve member therein whereby thetubular member spaces the stem from the lever at the opening thereof,the tubular member having opposed ends respectively defining outwardlydirected annular flanges that respectively engage against the opposedsides of the lever adjacent the opening thereof and the stem of thevalve member defining a pair of spaced apart shoulders on the valvemember that respectively are adapted to engage the flanges of thetubular member. For example, see the U.S. Pat. No. 3,783,893 to Davison.

It is also known to provide a valve construction comprising a housingmeans provided with a chamber therein and with an inlet leading to thechamber and an outlet leading from the chamber, a valve seat carried bythe housing means and leading to the outlet, a movable bimetallic levermeans carried by the housing means and having an operating bimetallicpart and an ambient temperature compensating bimetallic part, and avalve member carried by the bimetallic lever means for opening andclosing the valve seat under the control of the operating part of thebimetallic lever means. For example, see the previously mentioned U.S.Pat. No. 4,053,136 to Perl.

It is also known to provide a valve construction comprising a housingmeans provided with a chamber therein and with an inlet leading to thechamber and an outlet leading from the chamber, a valve seat carried bythe housing means and leading to the outlet, a movable bimetallic levermeans carried by the housing means and having an operating bimetallicpart, a heater wire means disposed in coiled relation about theoperating part to heat the same when electrical current flows throughthe heater wire means, and a valve member carried by the bimetalliclever means for opening and closing the valve seat under the control ofthe operating part of the bimetallic lever means. It is also known tohave a tab of a bimetallic lever operatively hold a coiled heater wiremeans on the bimetallic lever means. For example, see the U.S. Pat. No.2,409,112 to Dillman. For example, see the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No.4,053,136 to Perl and the U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,483 to Schwartz.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is one feature of this invention to provide a new valve constructionwherein the valve member thereof is not adversely affected by theopening in the lever means that receives a stem of the valve membertherein.

In particular, it was found according to the teachings of this inventionthat the conventional opening provided through the lever means of aprior known valve construction has punching burrs that tend to damagethe stem or neck of the valve member being carried therein and also hasa sharp hole edge that tends to cause hangup of the valve member withthe lever means.

Accordingly, it was found according to the teachings of this inventionthat a unique tubular member can be utilized in the opening of the levermeans to be disposed intermediate the lever and the stem of the valvemember to substantially eliminate the aforementioned problems.

For example, one embodiment of this invention provides a valveconstruction comprising a housing means, a valve seat carried by thehousing means, a movable lever carried by the housing means and havingan opening passing through opposed sides of the lever, a valve memberfor opening and closing the valve seat and having a stem projectingthrough the opening of the lever whereby the valve member is carried bythe lever, and a tubular member disposed in the opening of the lever andtelescopically receiving the stem of the valve member therein wherebythe tubular member spaces the stem from the lever at the openingthereof. The tubular member has opposed ends respectively definingoutwardly directed annular flanges that respectively engage against theopposed sides of the lever adjacent the opening thereof. The stem of thevalve member defines a pair of spaced apart shoulders on the valvemember that respectively are adapted to engage the flanges of thetubular member. At least one of the flanges has arcuate projection meansthereon that is adapted to be engaged by its respective shoulder of thevalve member to tend to permit the valve member to align with the valveseat.

It is another feature of this invention to provide a new valveconstruction wherein the fluid flow through the valve construction isuniquely directed to the ambient temperature compensating bimetallicpart of the movable bimetallic lever means thereof so as to lower itstemperature and thus slightly increase the valve opening as a functionof fluid flow through the valve construction.

In particular, it was found according to the teachings of this inventionthat once the bimetallic lever means has moved the valve member to anopen condition so as to cause fluid flow therethrough, the directing ofthe fluid flow so as to contact the ambient temperature compensatingpart of the bimetallic valve member will cause the bimetallic lever tofurther open the valve member away from the valve seat.

For example, another embodiment of this invention provides a valveconstruction comprising a housing means provided with a chamber thereinand with an inlet leading to the chamber and an outlet leading from thechamber, a valve seat carried by the housing means and leading to theoutlet, a movable bimetallic lever means carried by the housing meansand having an operating bimetallic part and an ambient temperaturecompensating bimetallic part, a valve member carried by the bimetalliclever means for opening and closing the valve seat under the control ofthe operating part of the bimetallic lever means, and deflector meanscarried by the housing means in the chamber thereof and having openingmeans therethrough that is aligned with the inlet for receiving a fluidflow from the inlet and for directing the fluid flow from the inlet awayfrom the operating part of the bimetallic lever means and toward theambient temperature compensating part thereof to tend to cool theambient temperature compensating part when fluid flows through thechamber from the inlet through the outlet.

It is another feature of this invention to provide a new valveconstruction wherein the heater wire means and the bimetallic levermeans that carries the heater wire means are uniquely arranged.

In particular, it was found according to the teachings of this inventionthat the heater wire means can be held on the bimetallic lever means bya tab of the bimetallic lever means.

For example, another embodiment of this invention provides a valveconstruction comprising a housing means provided with a chamber thereinand with an inlet leading to the chamber and an outlet leading from thechamber, a valve seat carried by the housing means and leading to theoutlet, a movable bimetallic lever means carried by the housing meansand having an operating bimetallic part, a heater wire means disposed incoiled relation on the operating part to heat the same when anelectrical current flows through the heater wire means, and a valvemember carried by the bimetallic lever means for opening and closing thevalve seat under the control of the operating part of the bimetalliclever means, the operating part of the bimetallic lever means having atab extending therefrom and being operatively interconnected to theheater wire means to tend to hold the heater wire means in the coiledrelation on the operating part of the bimetallic lever means. The heaterwire means comprises a length of the wire means doubled upon itself todefine a looped end and a pair of free ends adjacent each other with thelooped end being hooked over the tab or being disposed under the tab.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new valveconstruction having one or more of the novel features of this inventionas set forth above or hereinafter shown or described.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new method of makingsuch a valve construction, the method of this invention having one ormore of the novel features of this invention as set forth above orhereinafter shown or described.

Other objects, uses and advantages of this invention are apparent from areading of this description which proceeds with reference to theaccompanying drawings forming a part thereof and wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of one embodiment of the new valveconstruction of this invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken on line 2--2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 2 and illustrates anotherembodiment of the new valve construction of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially on line 4--4 ofFIG. 2.

FIG. 4A is a view similar to FIG. 4 and illustrates another arrangementof the heater wire and bimetal lever means of this invention.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 5--5 of FIG.2.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially on line 6--6 ofFIG. 2 with certain parts being broken away.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially on the line 7--7 ofFIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 4 with the bimetallic levermeans and its mounting structure removed.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the deflector meansand filter screen of the valve construction of FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged, fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line10--10 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view illustrating thebimetallic lever means and an eyelet part thereof before the same areassembled together.

FIG. 12 is a view similar to FIG. 11 and illustrating the eyelet and thebimetallic lever means assembled together.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged, fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line13--13 of FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view illustrating thebimetallic lever means and the heater wire means therefor.

FIG. 15 is a top view of another embodiment of the new valveconstruction of this invention.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 16--16 of FIG. 15.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 17--17 of FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is an exploded perspective view of the deflector means andfilter screen of the valve construction of FIG. 15.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

While the various features of this invention are hereinafter illustratedand described as being particularly adapted to provide a valveconstruction to provide a flow of gaseous fuel to a burner means of acooking apparatus or the like, it is to be understood that the variousfeatures of this invention can be utilized singly or in variouscombinations thereof to provide a valve construction for supplying othertypes of fluid for other apparatus as desired.

Therefore, this invention is not to be limited to only the embodimentsillustrated in the drawings, because the drawings are merely utilized toillustrate one of the wide variety of uses of this invention.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4-14, one embodiment of the new valveconstruction of this invention is generally indicated by the referencenumeral 20 and comprises a housing means 21 formed from a metalliccup-shaped housing part 22 having an open end 23 closed by anothermetallic housing member 24 that is held in place by a turned over flangemeans 25 of the housing member 22 and is sealed in place by a sealinggasket means 26 so as to provide a substantially fluid-tight chamber 27in the housing means 21.

The housing means 21 has an inlet 28 leading to the chamber means 27 andan outlet 29 leading from the chamber means 27. The inlet means 28 isdefined by a tubular inlet fitting 30 having a part 31 telescopicallydisposed in an opening 32 in the housing member 22 and being secured tothe housing member 22 by welding, brazing or other suitable means asindicated by the reference numeral 33 in FIG. 2. Similarly, the outletmeans 29 comprises an outlet fitting 34 having a tubular portion 35thereof disposed in an opening 36 through the housing member 24 andbeing secured thereto in its assembled relation by welding, brazing,etc. as indicated by the reference numeral 37.

The fittings 30 and 34 are formed of metallic material and respectivelyhave internally threaded ends 38 and 39 to be respectively fluidlyinterconnected to conduit means 40 and 41, the conduit means 40 leadingfrom a fluid source 42, such as a gaseous fuel source, and the conduitmeans 41 leading to an output device 43, such as a gaseous burner means43 of a cooking apparatus (not shown) or the like.

A metallic tubular valve seat member 44 has an externally threaded end45 threadedly disposed in an internally threaded portion 46 of theoutlet fitting 34 so as to provide for axial adjustment therebetween,the tubular valve seat member 44 having an annular valve seat 47 thatprojects into the chamber 27 to be opened and closed by a movable valvemember 48 in a manner hereinafter set forth, the valve seat member 44being sealed to the outlet fitting 34 by an annular sealing means 49that permits axial movement between the valve seat member 44 and theoutlet fitting 34 so as to provide for adjustment of the annular valveseat 47 relative to the housing means 21 for a purpose well known in theart.

The valve member 48 is formed of a suitable polymeric material and iscarried by a bimetallic lever means that is generally indicated by thereference numeral 50 and comprises an ambient temperature compensatinggbimetallic member 51 having opposed ends 52 and 53 and an operatingbimetallic member or part 54 having opposed ends 55 and 56, the ends 53and 55 of the bimetallic parts 51 and 54 being secured together in anysuitable manner, such as by spot welding, whereby the other ends 52 and56 of the bimetallic parts 51 and 54 define the opposed ends of thebimetallic lever means 50.

The end 56 of the bimetallic lever means 50 is secured to anelectrically insulating support means 57 that is secured to the housingmember 24 by metallic rivet means 58 that also secure an insulatingmember 59 against the outer surface 60 of the housing means 21 asillustrated in FIG. 2. The rivet means 58 also secure a pair ofterminals 61 and 62 against the insulating member 59 so that suitableexternal leads, not shown, can be respectively electricallyinterconnected to the terminals 61 and 62 and thereby be electricallyinterconnected to the fastening rivets 58 that lead into the housingchamber 27 for a purpose hereinafter described.

The end 56 of the bimetallic lever means 50 is secured to theelectrically insulating support 57 by a rivet means 63 as illustrated inFIG. 2 whereby the bimetallic lever means 50 is cantilever mounted inthe chamber 27 of the housing means 21 and the free end 52 thereofcarries the valve member 48 in an opening means 64 in the end 52 of thebimetallic lever means 50 in a manner hereinafter set forth whereby thevalve member 48 is adapted to open and close the valve seat 47 in amanner hereinafter set forth, the normal biasing force of the bimetalliclever means tending to maintain the enlarged disc-like end 65 of thevalve member 48 in sealing relation against the annular valve seat 47 toprevent fluid flow through the valve construction 20. Also, it can beseen that the pressure of the fuel in the chamber 27 from the source 42also will tend to normally hold the valve member 48 in its closedcondition against the valve seat 47.

A heater wire means 66 is disposed in coiled relation on the operatingpart 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 and comprises a conductiveribbon or wire 67 covered by electrically insulating material 68 in aconventional manner while the opposed ends 69 and 70 of the wire means67 extend from the insulating means 68 and are respectively secured bysoldering or the like to the rivets 58 that are electricallyinterconnected to the terminals 61 and 62 whereby an electrical currentis adapted to pass through the heater wire means 66 to heat theoperating part 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 and thereby cause thesame to warp in such a manner that the valve member 48 is moved awayfrom the valve seat 47 so that fuel can flow from the source 42 to theburner means 43 through the valve construction 20 as long as the heaterwire means 66 is so heating the operating part 54 of the bimetalliclever means 50 to cause such a warped condition of the bimetallic levermeans 50 in a manner well known in the art.

When current ceases to flow through the heater wire means 66, theoperating part 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 cools and unwarps sothat the natural force of the cooled bimetallic lever means 50 is tohold the valve member 48 sealed against the valve seat 47 in the closedcondition thereof so as to prevent fluid flow through the valveconstruction 20 from the source 42 to the burner means 43 in a mannerwell known in the art.

For example, see the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,053,136 to Perl,which illustrates and describes such an electrically operated valveconstruction for directing fuel from a source to a main burner meanseach time an electrical control system causes an electrical current toflow through the heater wire means disposed on the operating part of thebimetallic lever means whereby this patent is being incorporated intothis disclosure by this reference thereto.

Therefore, a further discussion of the use and operation of the valveconstruction 20 is deemed not necessary as such use and operation iswell known in the art whereby the unique features of this invention willnow be described.

As previously stated, one of the features of this invention is toprovide a unique mounting arrangement of the valve member 48 on thebimetallic lever means 50 so as to protect the same from any burrsand/or sharp corners that result from a punching of the opening 64through the opposed sides 71 and 72 of the end 52 of the ambienttemperature compensating bimetallic part 51 of the bimetallic levermeans 50.

In particular, the valve member 48 comprises a one-piece structureformed from polymeric material so as to make the disc end 65 thereofsufficiently resilient to fully seal against the annular valve seat 47of the valve seat member 44 in a manner known in the art, the valvemember 48 having a cylindrical stem or neck 73 that passes through theopening 64 in the bimetallic lever means 50 and defining enlargedannular shoulders 74 and 75 on opposite sides of the neck or stem 73 forrespectively being trapped by the opposite sides 71 and 72 of thebimetallic lever means 51 after an enlarged end 76 of the valve member48 has been snap-fitted through the opening 64 in a manner well known inthe art. In this manner, the valve member 48 is carried by thebimetallic lever means 50.

However, a unique tubular member or eyelet-like member of this inventionthat is generally indicated by the reference numeral 77 is utilized toprotect the valve member 48 in its mounted relation in the opening 64 ofthe bimetallic lever means 50 as the tubular member 77 of this inventionis substantially eyelet shaped and thereby has a tubular part 78disposed in the opening 64 so as to be disposed between the edge 79 ofthe opening 64 and the stem 73 of the valve member 48 and has twooutwardly turned annular flange-like parts 80 and 81 integrally joinedto opposed ends 82 and 83' of the tubular part 78 so as to berespectively disposed against the opposed sides 71 and 72 of thebimetallic lever means 51 and thereby provide smooth arcuate surfacesfor engagement with the shoulders 74 and 75 of the valve member 48 inthe manner illustrated in FIG. 10. In this manner, it can be seen thatthe valve member 48 is fully protected by the member 77 of thisinvention from any burrs on the edge of the opening 64 as well asprotected from any sharp corners on the bimetallic lever means 50 at theopening 64 thereof.

In order to permit the valve member 48 to rock relative to the end 52 ofthe bimetallic lever means 50 to thereby cause the disc end 65 to fullyseat against the annular valve seat 47 and thereby compensate for thearray of eyelet attitudes that can be assumed by the lever end 52 duringopening and closing of the valve member 48 under various operatingconditions as dictated by ambient temperature and current level, theupper annular shoulder 80 is provided with two diametrically opposedannular projections 83 as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 12 which engageagainst the shoulder 74 and provide contact with the annular shoulder 74on a line across the valve disc 65 regardless of the lever and eyeletattitude, two like arcuate projections 84 being provided on the lowerflange means 81 thereof for cooperating with the annular shoulder 75 ofthe valve member 48 in the same manner. However, as illustrated in FIG.10, it can be seen that the spacing between the shoulders 74 and 75 ofthe valve member 48 is greater than the spacing between the arcuateprojections 83 and 84 on the tubular member 78 so as to permit axialmovement of the stem 73 in the opening 64 to provide means forcompensating for any misalignment with the valve seat 47 as previouslyset forth as well as provide a means for creating a "pop open" action ofthe valve member 48.

For example, the eyelet 77 is essentially parallel with the valve seat47 when the valve disc 65 initially begins to open with the projections84 pushing downwardly on the shoulder 75 of the valve member 48 and thespacing between the shoulders 74 and 75 permits the valve disc 65 todrop until the shoulder 74 hits the projections 83 to create a greatervalve opening as the generated bimetal force overcomes the disc forcecreated by the gas pressure tending to hold the disc 65 closed againstthe valve seat 47. Thus, the dropping valve member 48 creates a "popopen" action.

One method of this invention for forming the valve construction 20 withthe unique tubular member 77 is illustrated in FIGS. 11-14 wherein thetubular member 77 initially has the tubular portion 78 non-flared on theend 85 thereof so that the end 85 can be readily inserted through theopening 64 in the end 52 of the ambient temperature compensating part 51of the bimetallic lever means 50 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 11,the end 52 of the bimetallic part 51 having been prestamped to define anannular area 86 adjacent the opening 64 and being provided with twooutwardly directed substantially pointed projections 87 which willassure that the arcuate projections 83 will be formed on the flange 80when the end 85 is subsequently turned over against the underside of thearea 86 of the bimetallic part 51 in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 12and 13. The annular flange 80 on the member 77 is initially cup-shapedthroughout the entire annular area as illustrated in FIG. 11 and duringthe turning over operation of the end 85 thereof in the mannerillustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13 to form the projections 84, the annularflange 80 is substantially flattened except for the projection areas 83thereof as illustrated in FIG. 13 as controlled by the pointedprojections 87, the projections 87 assuring that the projections 83 aredisposed on a line that is substantially transverse to the longitudinalaxis of the lever means 50 and prevent rotation of the eyelet 77 in theopening 64 once the eyelet 77 has been formed in place as theprojections 77 now mate with the projections 83.

Thus, it can be seen that it is a relatively simple method of thisinvention to provide the eyelet-like part 77 in the opening 64 of thebimetallic lever means 50 so as to protect the valve member 48 not onlyduring the insertion of the enlarged end 76 thereof through theresulting opening 88 in the eyelet-like member 77 so as to snap-fit thevalve member 48 in the opening 64 of the lever means 51, but to alsoprovide the smooth surface means between the opening 64 of the levermeans 51 and the opposed sides 71 and 72 thereof as defined by thetubular part 78 and the flanges 80 and 81 of the tubular member 77 ofthis invention.

As previously stated, it is another feature of this invention to provideunique means for mounting the heater wire means 66 on the operating part54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 of the valve construction 20.

In particular, it can readily be seen in FIG. 14 that the operatingbimetallic part 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 has a tab 89 benttherefrom so as to define a flat portion 90 of the tab 89 in such amanner that the same is spaced from the side 91 of the part 54 whilebeing substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis 92 of thebimetallic lever means 50 and parallel to and intermediate the opposedside edges 93 and 94 of the part 54 as illustrated. If desired, the tab89 can be carved from the bimetallic part 54 while forming a centralopening 95 therethrough in the manner illustrated in FIG. 14.

The wire means 66 can be preformed into the coiled condition illustratedin FIG. 14 to be slipped onto the bimetallic part 54 or could be coiledon the bimetallic part 54 as desired.

In any event, it can be seen that the heater wire means 66 is foldedback upon itself to define a looped end 96 that is adapted to be hookedover the tab 89 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 4 or be disposedbeneath the tab 89 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 4A and have twolike portions 97 and 98 thereof coiled in unison about the part 54 untilthe same define the free ends 69 and 70 thereof, the ends 69 and 70 eachbeing looped back upon itself in the area of the reference numerals 99and 100 to respectively extend over the opposed edges 93 and 94 of thepart 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50. In this manner, the foldedback parts 99 and 100 of the heater wire means 66 respectively hold theshort loops 101 and 102 over the respective edges 93 and 94 of thebimetallic part 54 to keep the last half turns 101 and 102 huggingagainst the bimetallic part 54. In a similar manner, the raised tab 89that captures the folded end 96 likewise holds the heater wire 66against the bimetallic part 54 at the other end of the heater wire 66regardless of whether the end 96 is hooked to the tab 89 as illustratedin FIG. 4 or is retained beneath the tab 89 as illustrated in FIG. 4A.

As illustrated in FIG. 14, the heater wire means 66 can be precoiled andbent into the configuration illustrated in FIG. 14 and then can bereadily slipped onto the bimetallic part 54 to have the folded end 96hooked to the tab 89 or inserted beneath the tab 89 and the folded overparts 99 and 100 respectively extend from the side edges 93 and 94 ofthe part 54 so that the ends 69 and 70 can be readily secured, such asby soldering or the like, to the rivets 58 so as to be therebyelectrically interconnected to the terminals 61 and 62.

In this manner, it can be seen that the ends 69 and 70 of the heaterwire means 66 extend from the same end of the bimetallic lever means 50and do not require any electrical current to flow through the bimetalliclever means 50. Such an arrangement for not having a current flowthrough the bimetallic member appears to be provided in theaforementioned patent to Schwartz, U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,483 whereby thispatent is being incorporated into this disclosure by this referencethereto.

Therefore, it can be seen that it is a unique method of this inventionto either form the heater wire means 66 on the bimetallic part 54 byhooking the folded end 96 over the tab 89 or inserting the folded end 96under the tab 89 and then winding the parts 97 and 98 in side-by-siderelation about the part 54 until the ends 99 and 100 are looped or topreform the heater wire means 66 in the configuration illustrated inFIG. 14 and then slip the same onto the bimetallic part 54 so that theend 96 is hooked over the tab 89 or under the tab 89 as previously setforth.

In any event, it can be seen that when an electrical current flowsthrough the heater wire means 66, the same heats the operating part 54of the bimetallic lever means 50 to cause the same to warp in the mannerpreviously described and for the purpose previously described.

As previously set forth, it is another feature of this invention toprovide means that will direct the fluid flow from the inlet 29 awayfrom the operating part 54 of the bimetallic lever means 50 and onto theambient temperature compensating part 51 thereof so as to cool the part54 during the flow of fluid through the valve construction 20.

Such unique means of this invention for accomplishing this purpose isgenerally indicated by the reference numeral 103 in the drawings andcomprises a deflector member 104 formed of metallic material andfastened in place against the closed end wall 105 of the housing member22 by any suitable securing means, such as by spot welding 106, etc.

The deflector member 104 can comprise a one-piece member suitablystamped and bent into the configuration illustrated in FIG. 9 so thatthe same has a deflector part 107 which spans an inlet opening 108 ofthe inlet fitting 30 and is provided with an opening 109 therethroughwhich aligns with the opening 108 of the inlet fitting 30. A deflectortab 110 is bent from the deflector part 107 and so angled that the fluidflow coming from the inlet fitting 30 through the opening 109 in thedeflecting part 107 will engage against the arcuate surface 111 of thedeflector tab 110 and be directed away from the operating part 54 of thebimetallic lever means 50 and down against the closed end wall 105 ofthe housing member 22 so as to bounce off of the same at an angle thatwill cause the flow to be directed against and over the ambienttemperature compensating bimetallic part 51 of the lever means 50 beforethat fluid flow will pass out through the opened valve seat 47 when thebimetallic lever means 50 has the valve member 48 in an open conditionthereof. It is obvious that no fluid flow occurs in such a manner whenthe valve member 48 is in its closed condition even though the source 42is always interconnected to the inlet fitting 30 so as to provide fluidwithin the chamber 27 of the valve construction 20 in a manner wellknown in the art.

In this manner, since the fluid flow through the valve construction 20occurs when the valve member 48 has been moved to an open condition bythe heater wire means 66 heating the operating part 54 of the bimetalliclever means 50 in the manner previously set forth. Such cooling flow offluid onto the part 51 of the bimetallic lever means 50 lowers itstemperature and causes the part 54 to warp in an open direction so as toincrease the opening of the valve member 48 away from the valve seat 47as it is well known that a compensating bimetallic part of a bimetalliclever means warps in the opposite direction from the operating partthereof upon the heating or the cooling thereof. In this manner, thefurther opening of this valve member 48 away from the valve seat 47 is afunction of gas flow through the valve construction 20. Also, bydirecting this gas flow away from the operating part 54 of thebimetallic lever means 50, this cooling effect will not cause theoperating part 54 to tend to warp slightly in the closing direction.

If desired, a filter screen 112 can be carried by the deflector means103 so as to span the opening 109 thereof to screen or filter the fluidflow through the valve construction 20, such screen or filteringarrangements normally being provided in the inlet fitting of the priorknown valve constructions and not in the internal chambers thereof asprovided by the screen 112 of this invention.

In particular, the screen 112 can be formed of any suitable material andcan be folded into the configuration illustrated in the drawings so asto have end parts 113 thereof disposed through slot means 114 definedbetween the deflecting part 107 of the deflector member 104 andupstanding legs 115 thereof so as to be disposed against the side 116 ofthe legs 115 and against the opposite side 117 of the deflector portion107 as illustrated in the drawings whereby the screen 112 is fullycarried by the deflector means 103 to screen the fluid flow through theopening 109 of the deflector means 107 as such fluid flow occurs uponthe opening of the valve member 48 in the manner previously set forth.

Therefore, it can be seen that it is a relatively simple method of thisinvention to provide the deflector means 103 by forming the deflectormember 104 into the configuration illustrated in the drawings and fastenthe same inside the housing means 21 in any suitable manner so that theopening 109 thereof will be aligned with the opening 108 of the inletfitting 30 and to insert the screen 112 about the legs 115 and deflectorportion 107 so as to cover the opening 109 to filter the fluid flowtherethrough as previously set forth.

While the valve construction 20 has been illustrated and described ashaving particular shaped inlet and outlet fittings 30 and 34, it is tobe understood that other fittings can be utilized if desired.

For example, reference is now made to FIG. 3 wherein another outletfitting 34A is provided for the valve construction 20A which has theparts thereof similar to the parts of its valve construction 20indicated by like reference numerals followed by the reference letter"A".

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the valve seat member 44A and the valve member48A of the valve construction 20A are substantially the same as themembers 44 and 48 previously described. However, the outlet fitting 34Ahas an adjustable needle valve arrangement 118 on the outer end thereofwith the needle valve arrangement 118 being conventional in the art andbeing utilized for adjusting the fluid flow therethrough as is wellknown in the art.

Also, while the valve construction 20 of this invention has beenpreviously illustrated and described as having only one operating levermeans 50 and one outlet therefor, it is to be understood that the samecan be provided with a pair of outlets and a pair of bimetallic levermeans for such outlets so that the resulting valve construction can beutilized for a double burner arrangement in a manner well known in theart and as set forth in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,483 toSchwartz.

For example, reference is now made to FIGS. 15-18 wherein another valveconstruction of this invention is generally indicated by the referencenumeral 20B and parts thereof similar to the valve construction 20previously described are indicated by like reference numerals followedby the reference letter "B".

As illustrated in FIGS. 15-17, it can be seen that the valveconstruction 20B has the housing means 21B thereof so constructed andarranged that the same has two opposed outlet fittings 34B respectivelycarrying two tubular valve seat members 44B which are adpated to berespectively opened and closed by two valve members 48B respectivelycarried by two like bimetallic lever means 50B that are respectivelymounted to mounting means 57B secured to the housing means 21B in themanner previously set forth.

However, the inlet fitting 30B for the valve construction 20B is soarranged that the opening 108B thereof is disposed substantially equallybetween the bimetallic lever means 50B so that the fluid flow out of theopening 108B would be parallel to the operating levers 50B butintermediate the same.

A deflector means 103B of this invention for the valve construction 20Bcomprises a deflector member 104B that is so shaped that the samedefines a confining tubular like portion 119 that terminates in anarcuate end portion 120 which has a pair of tabs 121 and 122respectively carved therefrom and respectively defining openings 123 and124 adjacent the bimetallic lever means 50B, the tabs 121 and 122 beingso constructed and arranged that the same deflect the fluid flow out ofthe openings 123 and 124 respectively to the ambient temperaturecompensating parts 51B of the bimetallic lever means 50B while thetubular part 119 of the deflector means 104B maintains the flow of fluidthrough the deflector means 104B away from the operating parts 54B ofthe bimetallic lever means 50B. In this manner, it can be seen that thedeflector member 104B causes the bimetallic parts 51B to operate in thesame manner as the part 51 previously described so that such operationwill not be repeated.

The screen 112B of the valve construction 20B is disposed across theinlet fitting 30B and can be held in place by suitably shaped legs 125on the deflector means 104B in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 16wherein the legs 125 are disposed or slipped behind housing projections126 in a dovetailing manner.

Thus, it can readily be seen that it is a relatively simple method ofthis invention to form the deflector means 104B from a single metallicmember by a suitable stamping and bending operation so that the openings123 and 124 and tabs 121 and 122 can be formed in the configurationillustrated in the drawings so as to cause the fluid flow that entersinto the chamber 27B of the valve construction 20B upon the opening ofthe respective valve member 48B to flow out of the openings 123 and 124against the ambient temperature compensating parts 51B of the levers 50Bfor the reasons previously set forth for the valve construction 20. Ofcourse, only one bimetallic lever means 50B can be operated and it willhave its ambient temperature compensating bimetallic parts 51B cooled bythe fluid flow as previously described.

Therefore, it can be seen that this invention not only provides a newvalve construction, but also this invention provides a new method ofmaking such a valve construction.

While the forms and methods of this invention now preferred have beenillustrated and described as required by the Patent Statute, it is to beunderstood that other forms and method steps can be utilized and stillfall within the scope of the appended claims wherein each claim setsforth what is believed to be known in each claim prior to this inventionin the portion of each claim that is disposed before the terms "theimprovement" and sets forth what is believed to be new in each claimaccording to this invention in the portion of each claim that isdisposed after the terms "the improvement" whereby it is believed thateach claim sets forth a novel, useful and unobvious invention within thepurview of the Patent Statute.

What is claimed is:
 1. In a method of making a valve constructioncomprising the steps of providing a housing means, disposing a valveseat so as to be carried by said housing means, disposing a movablelever so as to be carried by said housing means, forming an opening topass through opposed sides of said lever, providing a valve member foropening and closing said valve seat, projecting a stem of said valvemember through said opening of said lever whereby said valve member iscarried by said lever, disposing a tubular member in said opening ofsaid lever so as to telescopically receive said stem of said valvemember therein whereby said tubular member spaces said stem from saidlever at said opening thereof, forming said tubular member to haveopposed ends respectively defining outwardly directed annular flangesthat respectively engage against said opposed sides of said leveradjacent said opening thereof, and forming said stem of said valvemember to define a pair of spaced apart shoulders on said valve memberthat respectively are adapted to engage said flanges of said tubularmember, the improvement comprising the step of forming at least one ofsaid flanges to have arcuate projection means thereon that is adapted tobe engaged by its respective shoulder of said valve member to tend topermit said valve member to align with said valve seat.
 2. A method asset forth in claim 1 and including the steps of forming the spacingbetween said shoulders on said valve member to be greater than thespacing between said flanges, and forming said stem to be looselydisposed in said tubular member so that said valve member is movablerelative to said lever within the limits of said shoulders cooperatingwith said flanges.
 3. A method as set forth in claim 1 and including thesteps of forming said projection means on said one of said flanges tocomprise a pair of projections that are diametrically disposed onopposite sides of said opening, and forming said lever to have alongitudinal axis and said pair of projections to be disposed on adiameter of said opening that is substantially transverse to saidlongitudinal axis of said lever.
 4. In a method of making a valveconstruction comprising the steps of providing a housing means,disposing a valve seat so as to be carried by said housing means,disposing a movable lever so as to be carried by said housing means,forming an opening to pass through opposed sides of said lever,providing a valve member for opening and closing said valve seat,projecting a stem of said valve member through said opening of saidlever whereby said valve member is carried by said lever, disposing atubular member in said opening of said lever so as to telescopicallyreceive said stem of said valve member therein whereby said tubularmember spaces said stem from said lever at said opening thereof, formingsaid tubular member to have opposed ends respectively defining outwardlydirected annular flanges that respectively engage against said opposedsides of said lever adjacent said opening thereof, and forming said stemof said valve member to define a pair of spaced apart shoulders on saidvalve member that respectively are adapted to engage said flanges ofsaid tubular member, the improvement comprising the step of forming saidflanges to respectively have arcuate projection means thereon that areadapted to be respectively engaged by said shoulders of said valvemember to tend to permit said valve member to align with said valveseat.
 5. A method as set forth in claim 4 and including the step offorming said valve member to comprise a one-piece member formed ofpolymeric material.
 6. A method as set forth in claim 4 and includingthe step of snap-fitting said stem through said tubular member so as tobe disposed in said opening of said lever.
 7. A method as set forth inclaim 4 and including the step of forming said lever to comprise abimetallic lever means having a free end and forming said free end tohave said opening therein.
 8. A method as set forth in claim 7 andincluding the steps of forming said bimetallic lever means to comprisean operating bimetallic part and an ambient temperature compensatingpart, and interconnecting said bimetallic parts together in alignedrelation.
 9. A method as set forth in claim 8 and including the steps ofdisposing a heater wire means so as to be carried by said operatingbimetallic part of said lever means, and forming said ambienttemperature compensating part of said bimetallic lever means to havesaid opening therein and thereby carry said valve member.
 10. A methodas set forth in claim 4 and including the steps of forming the spacingbetween said shoulders on said valve member to be greater than thespacing between said arcuate projection means on said flanges, anddisposing said stem loosely in said tubular member so that said valvemember is movable relative to said lever within the limits of saidshoulders cooperating with said projection means.
 11. A method as setforth in claim 10 and including the step of forming said projectionmeans on one of said flanges to comprise a pair of projections that arediametrically disposed on opposite sides of said opening.
 12. A methodas set forth in claim 11 and including the step of forming said lever tohave a longitudinal axis and said pair of projections to be disposed ona diameter of said opening that is substantially transverse to saidlongitudinal axis of said lever.
 13. A method as set forth in claim 12and including the step of forming said lever to have means cooperatingwith said pair of projections to prevent rotation of said tubular memberrelative to said lever.
 14. A valve construction as set forth in claim12 and including the step of forming said means of said lever thatcooperates with said pair of projections to comprise a pair of pointedprojections on said lever.